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Lakes Distillery names new CEO
English whisky producer The Lakes Distillery has appointed former William Grant & Sons executive James Pennefather as its CEO.
Pennefather is due to join The Lakes team on 1 July, assuming the role from Nigel Mills CBE who will move into the position of non-executive board director.
Pennefather has commercial, operational, and leadership experience, and has worked on Diageo-owned brands.
For the past nine years, Pennefather held the role of managing director of operations in India, and regional director of the Middle East, Africa, and the Indian subcontinent for Scottish spirits firm William Grant & Sons.
“I first visited The Lakes Distillery on a tour with my family and was extremely impressed. What shone through was a passion to create a remarkably complex and multi-layered liquid, and an unwavering ambition to reach way beyond its borders,” said Pennefather.
“I’ve worked in the premium spirits industry for more than 20 years, both in the UK and abroad, and it was clear to me that The Lakes has the potential to become one of the great luxury international spirits brands. As someone with proud Lake District roots, I could not pass on the opportunity to join the team and help to deliver on this vision.
“The next phase of growth requires us to establish The Lakes as an aspirational brand in international markets. It will bring new challenges but what I can confidently say is that the whisky being made at The Lakes is perfectly placed to succeed on a global stage where opportunity abounds and having an obsession for flavour is paramount.”
Pennefather’s predecessor Mills has led The Lakes Distillery since its establishment in 2012. Mills founded the facility with Paul Currie.
Mills added: “Now is the right time for me to step away from the day-to-day running of The Lakes. I have been thinking about succession for some time and believe that in a little over 10 years we have built a modern and progressive whisky distillery with the building blocks in place for a very exciting new era of growth and innovation.
“In the last two years alone, we have tripled spirit-making capacity, seen single malt whisky sales grow by 85% year on year, and expanded our footprint into 14 countries, including the US, France, Japan, and China.
“I’m immensely proud of what we have achieved but also know that James’ experience in domestic and international markets is exactly what the business needs at this stage of our journey. I look forward to seeing The Lakes Distillery develop and scale under his leadership.”
Pennefather’s appointment follows the addition of Sarah Burgess to The Lakes’ whisky making team in January. Burgess was previously the lead whisky maker at The Macallan.
Chairman Tim Farazmand said: “Together with Paul and the team, Nigel has built The Lakes Distillery from the ground up and helped to inspire the regeneration of the English whisky industry. The journey the business has been on is quite remarkable, and Nigel has not only ensured we have firm foundations from which to build but will also continue to support both James and the whole team in his new role as a non-executive board director.”